Nine Ways to Fix a Broken Brand

The good news is that even a dead brand can be revived or completely reinvented. Think of Banana Republic. It started out as a clothing retailer with a gimmick: Wouldn't it be fun to buy safari clothing and shop in a store that has fake palm trees, shipping crates for props, and a piece or two of a Jeep? Well, maybe for a while. But the half-life of even the best, most narrowly defined concept is painfully brief, and that version of Banana Republic soon enough became an endangered species. But still, there was something there, something within the notion of "business casual" that had potential for resuscitation. The Gap acquired Banana Republic and reinvented it, this time as a more upscale retailer offering everything from essential sweaters to aromatherapy products to knockoff Donna Karan crepe suits. Quite a leap; quite a rebirth. (Of course, in time, it will need to be reinvented again.)

5. My brand is stuck in the past.

It happens to the best brands. In fact, it almost always happens to the best brands. They take off like a comet, only to plateau. They make gradual improvements, but they need transformation.

It happened to Nike. When I joined the company in 1987, it was attempting to transcend its narrow base of hard-core competitive male athletes and appeal to a broader consuming public. Up until that time, "brand Nike" was essentially pure competition: Its brand DNA was testosterone heavy, with a "wimps need not apply" ethos. "Authentic athletic performance" was being interpreted too narrowly. Nike needed to be a more inclusive, rather than exclusive, brand. At the same time, it couldn't jeopardize the young-male franchise that considered Nike to be "their" brand.

A few months before I came on board, Nike had aired a TV commercial called "Revolution" that was a huge departure for the company. It featured a complex juxtaposition of gritty black-and-white 8-mm images that ranged all over the cultural map. The message: Nike was a brand that spoke to women as well as to men, to the old as well as to the young, to obscure street athletes as well as to world champs.

The problem was, the subsequent campaign was a step in the wrong direction. "Hayward Field" -- a loving visual testimonial to the track at the University of Oregon -- was both inward and backward looking. We killed the ad minutes after previewing it to a thousand Nike sales reps who then left the sales meeting with nothing to show the footwear buyers when writing back-to-school orders. We were in a very tough spot. We sent Wieden+Kennedy back to the well with a short brief that stated the obvious: We had to stop talking just to ourselves and open up the access point to the brand. The emotional and physical benefits to sports and fitness were much more expansive than we had defined them to date.

Two weeks later, Dan Wieden, David Kennedy, and four or five staffers (who made up half of the agency at the time) had the answer. Consumers already knew all that they needed to know about fitness. Most were not happy about the shape they were in. Few had the time to be serious athletes. So why rub their noses in it? They just needed a little encouragement, an optimistic challenge. ''Just Do It'' was a watershed moment for Nike. It established a broad communication platform from which we could talk to just about anyone. It wasn't only about world-class athletics; it was about fundamental human values shared by triathletes and mall walkers alike. It wasn't a product statement either. It was a brand ethos. Nike had found a way to respect its past while embracing its future. ''Just Do It'' was a much-needed reexpression of timeless Nike values.

6. My brand is too narrow.

Here are five smart ways to build intelligent brandwidth.

First, develop a beneficial cobranding deal with a good partner -- someone who brings something of value to the table that you don't have. Starbucks's deal with United Airlines put Starbucks coffee on United flights worldwide and allowed both sides to achieve important brand objectives.

Second, reach out for a brand extension. Time magazine had a very popular section in the back of the book that featured interesting people. A brand extension turned that section into People magazine. People magazine was a dazzling success -- so much so that it launched its own brand extension: Teen People magazine.

Third, leap into new distribution channels. Putting Starbucks on United flights cobranded the cup of coffee. Putting whole-bean and ground coffees into more than 30,000 grocery stores created a complementary channel for an existing product.

Fourth, jump into new product categories. Think about Ralph Lauren's line of paints, which are now sold in home-improvement stores. The company unearthed a new category and a new distribution channel. Martha Stewart started with a cookbook. Today, if I need garden clogs, I'll buy them from her. Starbucks became the maker of the best-selling coffee ice cream in grocery stores around the nation in less than six months.